District 220 to seek bonds, tax hike

August 24, 2006|By Jamie Francisco, Tribune staff reporter.

Due to a production error, the following report did not appear in Wednesday's Near Northwest and Northwest Metro sections.

Aiming to ease overcrowding, Barrington school officials decided Tuesday night to ask voters in November to approve an $87.5 million bond issue and a tax increase to build and staff two middle schools.

"This is a holistic solution that addresses the space challenges we have," said board President Jeff Nordquist.

Members of the Barrington Community Unit District 220 board said the two measures need to be placed on the fall ballot to capitalize on the momentum from the March election. Though two similar proposals failed then, district officials said that after analyzing voting patterns, they can address voter concerns and conduct a successful campaign.

In spring, about 54 percent of voters rejected a $107.1 million bond issue that would have funded two new middle schools and renovation of two existing middle schools. Nearly 60 percent opposed a tax increase of 25 cents for each $100 of equalized assessed valuation that would have paid for teachers to staff the new schools.

The November bond-issue proposal will ask for less money by eliminating a component of the March plan that called for an additional $10 million in bond proceeds to buy the Health World Children's Museum. The district planned to use the museum for administrative offices and early-childhood learning centers.

The board voted 4-3 to put the $87.5 million bond issue on the ballot, with Jeff Church, Judy Freeman and Brian Battle casting dissenting votes. Battle said he took issue with the timing of the measures.

"We are wrestling with some issues that could benefit with further discussion with the community," he said.

The proposed tax increase is also less than the March proposal. The board will ask for an 15 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. Freeman and Church also voted against that measure.

Before the meeting, opponents vowed to fight both proposals, just as they did in March.

"This is a bunch of baloney sausage," said Carol Schubert, president of Barrington Enlightened Taxpayers Association. "They don't need this."

The district's projected population figures do not warrant two new schools, Schubert said. The district is asking for too much money and should build one school to deal with middle school overcrowding, she said.

"I don't care how much they knock the number down," she said. "It's going to be wrong."

Parent and longtime Barrington resident Melissa Buckley disagreed, saying the district's long-range plan will accommodate growth for the next decade.

"The middle schools are busting at the seams," Buckley said. "They don't have adequate lockers; they can't fit books, let alone a backpack or a coat. The space needs are critical now, and there's growth going on in our district."